Belonging: Baptism in the Family of God, Parent's Set

Every week, new parents walk into parish offices and ask to have their child baptized. Some of these parents are deeply engaged with their Faith, but often they are not. Perhaps they’re having their child baptized to make their family happy, or as a way to mark their child’s birth and to throw a nice party, or maybe it is simply a part of their culture.

The new Belonging Parents Set provides these parents with a deep, holistic, beautiful presentation of what a Catholic life will look like for their child and their family. It is more than simply a summary of what the rite itself will be like. It introduces these parents and their child to life as a Catholic.

The Belonging Parents Set features two components, the Belonging Session Guide and the Belonging Parents Guide.

The Session Guide provides structure and guidance during your initial meeting with the parents, helping to address their questions and concerns about their child's upcoming baptism.

The Parents Guide paints a picture of how their child’s heart, soul, and life will be transformed by their baptism into the Catholic Church. 

Those leading Baptism prep at your parish can use the Belonging Session Guide as a helpful resource for your prep sessions. The guide engages their interest, by impressing the meaning of the sacrament on them. It also soothes any anxiety they may be feeling about the rite itself by clearly laying out what is expected of them during their child’s Baptism (when to stand and sit, what to say, and so forth). Included discussion questions draw them out during your prep session, to discover the role that the Faith plays in their lives, to help you connect with them and meet them where they are. 

Both the Belonging Parents Guide and the Belonging Session Guide are structured in four parts:

• Part 1: The Meaning of Baptism - Here, parents will discover a clear and compelling answer to the most fundamental question they are asking, “Why am I having my child Baptized?”
• Part 2: The Rite of Baptism - In this section, parents are given the details of the Baptism rite (the symbols, the materials used, the parts of the rite) so they can approach the sacrament confidently.
• Part 3: The Role of Parents and Godparents - What are you promising as the parent of the child being baptized? What obligations are you taking on when you agree to be a child’s godparent? All these questions and more are addressed in this section.
• Part 4: Raising a Young Catholic - Where do you go from here? Now that your child has been baptized in the Catholic Church, and you have promised to raise them in the Faith, how do you go about that? This section provides practical advice and guidance on how to create a Catholic culture in your home.

At the end of your initial meeting with the parents, offer them the Belonging Parents Guide to take home. This will give them the opportunity to delve deeper into the subject. The Parents Guide comes with access to Fr. Mike's online videos, which will help them understand better, but most importantly appreciate that the Church is their family, where they belong.

Don’t miss the chance to provide support to the new parent’s coming to your parish for Baptism. Don’t miss the chance to show them you care about them and their child. Offer them the Belonging Parent’s Guide.

Note: Purchase of this product grants immediate access to the study videos online! If you've already purchased access, view the study here.